Chelsea star Cole proves to be no crowd favourite at NBA clash as the boos flow

The cameramen revelled in picking out
the Premier League stars sitting courtside for the NBA game at the
sell-out O2 Arena – but Ashley Cole would have thanked them for missing
him out.

The Chelsea left back was loudly
booed by the 18,689-capacity crowd when his image was projected onto the
big screen situated high above the players from New York Knicks and
Detroit Pistons.

It was an awkward moment midway
through the third quarter, and the announcer tried to remind those in
attendance of all Cole has done for his country but the jeers persisted.

Boo boy: Ashley Cole was jeered by the crowd when shown on the big screen

Revelling: Manchester United's Nani was one of a number of Premier League stars to turn out

Not the only one: Patrick Vieira (right) and American Clint Dempsey were at the O2 to watch the match

The 99-time capped England defender kept his head bowed and carried on his conversation, ignoring the noise.

Cole is friends with Dave Hancock,
the Knicks’ English director of training and conditioning, who was once
physio at Chelsea under Jose Mourinho.

To be fair, Bacary Sagna was also
moderately booed when cameras picked him out, so maybe it was simply
pantomime season extending into January.

All star: Former Arsenal star Thierry Henry with film director Spike Lee

Compatriots: Dempsey was joined by American goalkeeper Tim Howard (left) and his Everton team-mate Sylvain Distin

Star studded: Aston Villa striker Darren Bent was also in the crowd

Thierry Henry was joined by former
team-mates Robert Pires and Patrick Vieira in North Greenwich, while
QPR’s Shaun Wright-Phillips, Anton Ferdinand and Armand Traore took a
break from fighting relegation to attend.

Manchester United winger Nani tweeted
a picture showing him watching from the VIP section in the stands,
while Chelsea defender David Luiz was also watching.

Front row: Former Bolton star Fabrice Muamba (left) smiled as he watched the Pistons take on the Knicks

Say cheese: Arsenal right back Bacary Sagna grabbed a microphone as photographers took pictures

Slam dunk: The footballers watched Amar'e Stoudemire and Co put on a show at the O2